Rice flour mixed with oat fibre and plant compounds in mice
What it found
Adding a specific oat fibre and plant compound mix to rice flour slowed digestion and blood sugar rises in mice.
The higher-weight version of the mix worked best.
What they found
Animal and lab studies
Lab antioxidant tests
In lab tests, the heavier mix showed stronger ability to neutralise free radicals than the lighter one. It also blocked starch-digesting enzymes more effectively.
Stomach emptying in mice
Mice eating rice flour with the heavier mix had the slowest stomach emptying. Their gut movement was also slower than in the other groups.
Blood sugar in mice
The heavier mix led to the smallest rise in blood sugar after eating rice flour. Insulin levels were also lower in these mice.
Digestive hormones in mice
Mice given the heavier mix had lower levels of hunger-related hormones like ghrelin and motilin. Activity of digestive enzymes was also reduced compared to the control group.
What the authors conclude
- They suggest the heavier mix of oat fibre and sea buckthorn compounds slows stomach emptying and lowers blood sugar responses when added to rice flour.
- Their findings offer data for making foods that digest slowly for people who need them.
How it was done
Mixing oat beta-glucan with plant compounds is known to slow starch digestion and blood sugar responses. Scientists wanted to understand how this affects stomach emptying and the reasons behind it.
Researchers tested two versions of an oat fibre and sea buckthorn compound mix, one heavier and one lighter. They ran lab tests on both, then fed rice flour with the heavier mix to mice. They compared those mice to others eating plain rice flour or rice flour with the lighter mix.
What it can’t tell you
- We summarised it from the abstract only.
- These results come from mice, so they cannot show what happens in people eating rice flour with these ingredients.
- The study looked at a single meal situation, so scientists do not yet know the effects of eating this regularly over time.
Who paid
- Authors work at
- Zhejiang Gongshang University, China; Quadram Institute Bioscience, U.K
The paper
- Title
- Effect of Complexation with Different Molecular Weights of Oat β-Glucan and Sea Buckthorn Flavonoid on the Digestion of Rice Flour
- Type
- Study
- Evidence
- Animals and lab studies
- Summarised from
- Abstract only
- Cite
- Yang H, Wilde P, Wang R, et al (2024). Effect of Complexation with Different Molecular Weights of Oat β-Glucan and Sea Buckthorn Flavonoid on the Digestion of Rice Flour. Journal of agricultural and food chemistry. doi:10.1021/acs.jafc.4c06405PubMed 39392941DOI
Summary written 30 Sep 2026. Check it against the paper before it changes what you eat. How we summarise papers · Report an error